Pilates Is Better Than Surgery For Back Pain!

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More Evidence That It’s Well Worth Trying Pilates Before Opting For Back Surgery!

This back surgeon has a better idea for back pain, and it’s not surgery!

So many just shake their heads in disbelief when I mention that evidence shows Pilates has an 8o% success rate for reducing or eliminating back pain – surgery only 30%.

Though back surgery continues to be prescribed, there is little evidence of benefits according to recently published research in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Ninety percent of people with back pain will get better without any treatment or with non-invasive methods such as physical therapy, exercise and medication. And when surgery is used there is a low success rate and even a risk of making matters worse!

When will the 8 out of 10 adults who experience back pain start looking more closely at exercise and specifically Pilates? Here’s a better question: when will doctors start doing so?

By the way, this article was written by our favorite doctor writing on the web today, Dr. Joseph Mercola. We highly recommend signing up for his daily brief science-based articles and videos with the latest nutritional and medical discoveries for humans and pets. Note that he sells a lot of supplements and devices which we don’t endorse, but if you can ignore all that, his informative articles are outstanding.

Here’s his latest!

Spine Surgeon Reveals Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain

As many as 8 out of 10 Americans struggle with back pain, and many resort to surgery as a solution. Unfortunately, this often does not resolve the problem, and in some cases simply worsens the situation.

Dr. David Hanscom, an orthopedic surgeon with a practice in Seattle, is unusual in that he tells most of his patients they don’t need surgery.…..

Spinal Fusions Rarely Cure Chronic Back Pain

Spinal fusions are a lucrative business and great source of revenue for the hospital and surgeon. Unfortunately, they rarely work for patients. Spinal fusions arose from the assumption that disc degeneration was a source of back pain.

Therefore, it was thought that by fusing the disc together with the bone, which eliminates motion, you would get rid of the pain. However, that has since been proven false.

“The success rate of the spinal fusion for back pain was about 24 percent, but we still kept doing it. Then, in 1994, when this paper came out Washington showing that the return-to-work rate one year after a spinal fusion for back pain was 15 percent, I just stopped.

Every paper since then has showed pretty much the same dismal results; there’s maybe a 20 to 25 percent success rate of spinal fusion for back pain…

And the downside of a failed spine surgery is terrible. It’s really bad. These people are condemned to live their entire lifetime, 30 to 40 more years, in chronic pain.”

Despite such findings, spinal fusions are still popular. Each year, some 600,000 spinal fusions are performed in the U.S. with a high percentage of them being performed for non-specific low-back pain, at a cost of more than $600 billion……….

Three Components to Treating Chronic Back Pain

According to Dr. Hanscom, disc degeneration is never a reason for surgery. In his view, surgery simply isn’t the right solution for back pain or neck pain. Sciatica and leg pain may be relieved through surgery, however. When it comes to treating back pain, he believes there are three components to getting better:

Learning about the mechanics of chronic pain and understanding that it’s a neurological disorder

Treating all the variables simultaneously. This includes sleep, stress, medication, nutrition, mental outlook on life, and physical conditioning. “There’s never one answer for chronic pain. People say, ‘I tried a chiropractor, it didn’t work.’ Well, that could help 10 percent, but if you’re not sleeping, it’s not going to work. You have to combine modalities to get better,” he says. “Sleep is No. 1. The entire project is null and void unless you’re sleeping”

Taking control of your own care. For example, for some people chiropractic or acupuncture may be very helpful, whereas it may not work for others. You need to take an active role in determining what’s best for you, and pursue treatments that work in your case………

About The Author

Buzz Staff

Thanks for visiting! We are a group of passionate and long-time Pilates students and instructors who contribute regularly to this website and Facebook Page (Pilates Buzz). We are now among the top Pilates sites on the web, and we take this seriously by bringing you the very best and latest from all over the Pilates world - provocative posts, latest products, best books and videos, and award-winning instructors. Occasionally, this may include our own material. When this is the case, the author is not involved in order to avoid bias and self-promotion. We accept no gifts or other compensation for the products we review or mention. We are rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau (click the BBB seal on the right for reviews). We'd be delighted to feature your post or announcement. Contact us anytime. And thank you for making us one of the best! By the way, we respect all the different schools of Pilates and welcome all points of view. We also love all the fusion of Pilates with other disciplines from yoga and Zumba to boxing and tango! Our one concern is that Pilates has become too complicated, and we are proud to feature our senior member, Bob Hannum pictured above, who is a leading voice for a return to the way Joseph Pilates originally taught - simple and easy. His latest articles are featured here. From all of us, enjoy!